Without a doubt, Google is a firm believer in change and innovation. Therefore, the company has decided to revamp its +1 button to drive traffic and improve your website ranking. How so?...

1) Share content with your Google+ circles – Now, you can instantly show your circles what you find interesting online just by clicking on the +1 button like this:

Notice the change? I like how Google’s Vic Gundotra puts it: “sometimes you want to start a conversation right away—at least with certain groups of friends. So beginning today, we’re making it easy for Google+ users to share webpages with their circles, directly from the +1 button. Just +1 a page as usual and look for the new ‘Share on Google+’ option. From there you can comment, choose a circle and share” (Crum).

2) +Snippets to start the conversation – If you do decide to share content from the +1 button, you will also see another change. A +snippet is shown, which includes a link, an image, and a brief description of the content. The cool thing is that publishers can customize these +snippets as well.

3) Face and name recognition when you visit a +1’d webpage – For instance, say I +1’d a webpage about a new restaurant in town and then when my friend Jesse visits that page, he will see my face and name. Here is an example from Google:

Can you guess how many daily views the +1 button has received thus far? Try 4 billion! Another important point: if you use Google Analytics, you can find +1 data there. This is an added bonus.

I highly recommend adding the +1 button to your website to gain more traffic and increase your ranking on Google. You will notice that I have added the +1 button on each blog post!

For a recap of the +1 button changes, check out this official video from Google:

Do you think the changes to the +1 button will help drive traffic to businesses’ websites? Why or why not? Have you added the +1 button to your site yet?

About Alan Moore: Alan is an Internet Marketing Consultant with ReachLocal Baltimore. His mission is to help you increase your revenues and decrease unproductive advertising expenses through proven, online marketing strategies. He manages over $1.2 million in yearly marketing budgets and has worked with local businesses, agencies and the US government. Give him a call at (877)655-3438 to schedule a free consultation.

Looking for additional information? Click here for the complete article written by Chris Crum at WebProNews.